Summer of Inspiration: Artist Date Week 6
One of the skills that I wish I possessed is the ability to whip up baked goods and fresh pastries on a whim.
Back in 2018, I embarked on a baking mission, but after achieving success with a hummingbird cake, I realized how much of a dent baking can make in one's wallet. It was an expensive endeavor, but the result made up for it until a roommate decided it was a good idea to put the cake out on the patio to make room for her groceries in the fridge. Needless to say, that dampened my aspirations.
The desire to bake from scratch returned during the pandemic when sourdough starters were a hot commodity. My mom, being the DIY queen that she is, had sourdough starters and kombucha SCOBY for days, so I was in good hands. I made sourdough, focaccia, and even gnocchi. Baking and cooking were one of the few instances in which I had a screen-free time to immerse myself completely in during those lockdown days. So much of my human connections were fostered online, on top of work being completely digital. My screentime was outrageous, so baking was a welcome activity to give my eyes a break and make something by hand that could nourish me.
With that memory in mind, I decided to bake cupcakes from scratch for this week's artist date instead of venturing out for a sweet treat.
Most of the ingredients I had in my pantry, so I only had to pick up a few things from the grocery store. This chocolate cupcake recipe was easy to make, although the cup of coffee was an odd addition to the recipe. Don't get me wrong, I was intrigued, so I opted for that instead of the buttermilk alternative.
I would say the process of measuring and mixing both dry and wet ingredients took me less than 20 minutes altogether. This is my favorite part of the process because I feel like a witch mixing her potions. Growing up, I was fascinated with the idea of making my own "perfume" by mixing all kinds of nice-smelling liquids and pastes. Needless to say, the results were less than desirable, but it allowed my creativity to grow.
Once I was done mixing, all I had to do was scoop them into the little cups and plop the tray in the oven. After 20 minutes, they were perfectly done with no residue on my chopstick when conducting the doneness test.
Since making icing requires a stand mixer, I opted for the store-bought icing, which I wouldn't recommend. It was a 1/10 in terms of flavor for me, mainly because it isn't fresh and probably contains a ton of preservatives to ensure that it's shelf-stable. If possible, make the icing from scratch.
As you can tell from the photo, icing is not my forte.
I used a makeshift piping bag with a Ziplock bag, but I didn't watch the YouTube guide early enough to add tape to the tip, which makes controlling the icing much easier. I finally decided on smearing the icing with a spoon into these abstract swirls. It is what it is.
So what's the verdict?
The cupcakes were chocolatey with a hint of coffee, moist, and not that sweet.
Perhaps the coffee enhanced the cocoa powder, so it isn't all that overpowering. It pairs perfectly with vanilla ice cream, so that was my go-to treat for the entire week. A fair warning is that if you're caffeine sensitive, try to eat this as early in the day as possible. On both days that I ate this after 5 p.m., I struggled to fall asleep, so the caffeine does hit after a certain time. This is also coming from someone who struggles to sleep after eating tiramisu. It's weird how the body metabolizes caffeine after a certain age. I used to be able to drink coffee after 6 p.m. and still fall asleep like a baby. Alas, the wonders of aging, I suppose.
As someone who hasn't baked cupcakes in god knows how long, this was the perfect entry point. I had so much fun mixing the ingredients with my little handwhisk, smearing the icing, and eating the cupcakes with ice cream on a warm summer's day. In many ways, I was able to nurture my inner child who used to play masak masak in the garden with my mom's pots and pans.
I believe that there are many ways to nurture your inner artist. Whether it's baking cupcakes or singing in the shower, these little acts remind us that we're inherently creative and that creativity doesn't stop at any medium.
